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Patented July 26, I898. va. r. LYON.

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Inventor GZZ YZaI/JI 07 Wine 3 s e s No. 608,058. Patonted July 26, I898. G. F. LYON.

HARP.

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\Nitnesses Inventor UNTTED STATES PATENT OFFICE GUSTAVE FRANTZ LYON, OF PARIS, FRANCE.

HARP.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 608,058, dated July 26, 1898.

Applicationfiled March 27,1897.

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, Gus'rnvn FRANTZ LYON, a citizen of France, residing at Paris, in the Department of the Seine, France, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Harps, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to the harp for which Letters Patent No. 519,80 were issued to me November 12, 1895.

The chief object of the present invention is to so improve the harp that its frame will possess increased strength and power of resistance to the strains exerted by the strings, while the weight of the frame is materially diminished.

The invention also has for its object toimprove the harp in such manner that the strings may be tuned without the aid of another instrument.

The invention also has for its object to provide a harp having a sonorous box or chest 0 constructed that it shall have a considerable degree of resistance to strain, said box being provided with openings and having combined therewith shutters capable of being operated simultaneously by a pedal or pedals to open or to close said openings to permit the full volume of sound to escape or to mufiie the same, according to the expression which the player desires to produce.

To enable others skilled in the art to fully and clearly understand and practice my said invention, I will now proceed to describe the same in detail, reference being had for this purpose to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a central vertical section through the frame of the harp. Fig. 2 is a section taken upon the lines A B O D E F in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a section upon the line D E in Fig. 1, the scale being enlarged. Fig. at is a detail view, upon an enlarged scale, showing the mechanism for operating the muiiiin g device. Fig. 5 is a detail view showing the pedal and connected parts for operating the shutters. Figs. 6, 7, and 8 are views showing the diapasons and the means for operating the same in tuning the harp.

The reference-numeral 1 in said drawings indicates the back frame of the harp, and 2 denotes the upper portion of said frame. The

Serial No. 629,581. (No model.)

back 1 is in cross section shaped approximately like a letter T and is preferably constructed of aluminium,which possesses tensile strength, rigidity, and lightness. The upper part 2 is hollow or chambered, and the third side of the triangular frame consists of ahollow post 3, which I prefer to make of iron.

Upon the back 1 is mounted the soundingboard or sound-chamber 4-, which is formed of wood and provided upon each side of the T-shaped frame 1 with a series of openings 5. These openings are formed in a curved wall 6, which is supported upon the T- shaped frame 1. lVithin the sound-chamber are, arranged shutters 7, Fig. 3, having such form that they may be brought to register with and close the openings 5. For this purpose said shutters are rigidly mounted upon the ends of levers 8, which are fulcrumed on brackets 9, the latter being placed upon the cross-head of the T-shaped frame 1, as seen in Figs. 1 and 3. The levers 8 are connected by a spring 10, by which the shutters are normally drawn toward the frame 1 and elf the openings 5, thereby opening the latter. The levers 8 are operated to move the shutters 7 and close the openings 5 by means of a pedal 11, having one end pivoted upon a post 12, which is itself pivoted upon a bracket 13, arranged within the chambered base of the frame 1. The free end of said pedal 11 projects through an opening 14: in the base of the sound-chamber and lies in convenient position to be operated by the foot of the player. A cord or wire 15 is attached to the pedal 11 and extends upward to and over a pulley 16, (shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1,) and thence around a cylinder 17, which is journaled between the brackets 9. Upon said cylinder are wound cords or wires 18, having their ends attached to the ends of the levers 8. By applying strain to the cord or wire 15 by operating the pedal 11 the cylinder17 will be revolved in such direction as to place the cords or wires 18 under strain and draw the ends of the levers 8 toward said cylinder. This movement will carry the shutters 7 over the openings 5 and close the same. hen the pedal 11 is released, the spring 19 raises this pedal, and the spring 10 immediately removes said shutters from the openings 5.

As the pedal 11 is operated either to close the openings 5 or released to permit the shutters to open the apparatus in the sounding board or sound-chamber the springs and 19 will constantly preserve a uniformlystretched condition of the cords or wires 18. The shutters 7 may be maintained in their closed position by slightly turning the pedal 11 after operating it, and thereby bringing it into a notch of the opening 14 in the wall, this movement being permitted by the pivotal support of the post 12in the bracket 13, as seen in Fig. 5.

In the upper part 2 of the frame of the harp I locate the series of diapasons, as I term them, and which consist of vibrators or suitable devices for producing musical tones such, for example, as the plates 20, each of which is caused to produce a musical sound by the blow of a hammer 21. This hammer is supported by the end of a sensitive spring 22, the other end of the spring being rigidly mounted on an L-shaped lever 23, having its shorter horizontal arm rigidly attached to a pivotally-supported weight-block 24, Fig. 8, arranged near one of the side walls of the chambered upper part 2 of the frame. Each of these L-shaped levers has an operatingshank and key 26, as shown in Fig. 8, the former passing through and the key 26 lying outside of the wall of the chamber in which the diapasons are arranged. The diapasons are sounded separately by striking a light blow with the finger upon the key 26 corresponding to the note desired.

As I have already remarked, the upper part 2 of the frame is hollow or chambered, and in order to obtain the maximum range of expression I provide means whereby the chamber may be thrown open or closed at the will of the operator. This consists of a closing or muffling plate 27, having such form that it can constitute part of the lower wall of the chambered portion 2, being held in its closed position by a bell-crank lever 28, one arm of which is telescoping and has pivotal connection with a lug 29 on the inner face of the plate 27. The other arm of said bell-crank has its end connected by a spring 30 to a rigid part of the top 2, so that normally the action of said spring will lift the plate 27 and close the opening in the chambered top 2. To

end being connected to the arm of the bellcrank 28 in such manner that it shall pull in aline of direction opposing the pull of the spring 30. This allows the plate 27 to drop by gravity and permits the sound-vibrations to escape from the chambered portion 2.

A screw-nut 36 permits of regulation of the wire 34, and a spring 37 raises the pedal 32 after the acting of the foot. This plate 27 lies beween the two rows of strings.

The metal employed in the construction of the frame has no function save as it adds to the resistance to strain that is imposed upon the frame. Practically speaking I use wood exclusively in forming the sounding chamber or box, so far as the sound-producing qualities are regarded, and I make no claim to the use of aluminium, broadly, in the construction of musical instruments.

There are in my harp twelve diapasons. They allow the player to tune his instrument,

for they give the twelve half-tones of an octave.

Having thus described my invention, What I claim is A harp, consisting of a duplex T-shaped frame portion 1, a wooden sounding-chamber 4 surrounding said frame portion and having a plurality of openings 5, a series of normally open shutters constructed to close said openings, a pedal and connections for operating the shutters, a hollow metallic top frame portion 2, a series of diapasons located in the said metallic top frame portion to tune the harp, a muftling-plate 27 lying under the said top frame portion, forming a part thereof and lying between the two rows of strings, and a pedal for operating the muftling-plate, substantially as and for the purposes described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing wit- GUSTAVE FRANTZ LYON. Witnesses:

GEORGES DELOM, EDWARD I. MAOLEAN. 

